Displaying items by tag: Holcim

Canada: Carbon-negative concrete producer CarbiCrete has signed a deal with Holcim subsidiary Lafarge Canada. Under the deal, Lafarge Canada will process steel slag at its St. Constant cement plant in Québec for use as an ingredient in CarbiCrete’s CO2-cured cement-free concrete.

CarbiCrete partner Patio Drummond produces carbon-negative concrete blocks using CarbiCrete’s technology at its Drummondville concrete block plant in Québec. The company is on a drive to double the production of CarbiCrete blocks. It first partnered with CarbiCrete during trial production of its material in 2018.

Lafarge Canada vice-president of cement Andrew Stewart said “We are committed to reducing our environmental footprint and leading the way in sustainable construction. Our partnership with CarbiCrete is a testament to our dedication to offering sustainable solutions and actively participating in the circular economy.”

CarbiCrete CEO Chris Stern said “Collaborating with Lafarge allows us to leverage long-established infrastructure and years of expertise in processing steel-related by-products. This enables us to make an immediate climate impact as we scale the deployment of our technology which reduces embodied carbon in concrete by both avoiding emissions and removing carbon through mineralisation.” Regarding the on-going scale-up of production at Patio Drummond’s Drummondville plant, Stern said “Increased production of our carbon-negative blocks brings us closer to our common goal of decarbonising production of the world’s most consumed man-made substance.”

UK: Holcim subsidiary Aggregate Industries has commenced its construction of a cement blending plant and import hub on the River Thames at the Port of Tilbury in Essex. The facility also includes units for the production of reduced-CO₂ cement components, including ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) and construction demolition waste (CDW)-based materials. The Tilbury site has five loading heads and will help Aggregate Industries to maintain its continuous supply of conventional, reduced-CO₂ and circular cementitious materials to London and South East England.

CEO Dragan Maksimovic said “This important investment will further strengthen our position in the market, allowing us to drive our sustainability ambitions and lead the way in low carbon and circular building materials. The London and South East construction market has major regional projects on the horizon, and we are primed and ready to meet the region’s rising demand for sustainable solutions.”

Steve Curley, managing director cement, added “Our ECOPlanet range of green cement was recently added to our green offering. By investing in this impressive facility within the Port of Tilbury, we will truly boost our sustainable offering and be more agile and efficient in the way we manufacture, transport and supply our products across this region.”

US: The Slag Cement Association (SCA) has announced the winners of its 2022 Slag Cement in Sustainable Concrete Awards program at the ACI Concrete Convention that took place in San Francisco in early April 2023.

Eighteen construction projects from across the US were chosen to showcase the broad applications of slag cement. These construction projects were awarded in six categories: infrastructure, high performance, architectural, durability, innovative applications, and lower carbon concrete. Two research projects on slag cement use were also recognised in the program. The slag cement and concrete suppliers included Argos, Heidelberg Materials, Holcim, Ozinga, Skyway Cement and St Marys Cement.

New Zealand: Holcim New Zealand says that it has received a mill for use in its upcoming Auckland cement replacement products import and distribution facility. The company opted for a Christian Pfeiffer ball mill for the project.

Holcim New Zealand says that alternative materials imported via the Auckland facility will eliminate 100,000t/yr of cement from New Zealand's 1.6Mt/yr consumption. The company expects that this will cut 78,000t/yr of CO₂ emissions.

Philippines: Holcim Philippines has launched ECOPlanet, a slag cement product. It will promote the cement as a general purpose blend for structural applications. It will be made available in 40kg bags in paper and plastic bags. The Philippines will be among the first markets where ECOPlanet is available. The subsidiary of Switzerland-based Holcim also intends to obtain an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) for the product in the next few months, as well as launching a plastic bag recycling scheme related to the product.

US: Essroc, part of Italcementi, has acquired the Holcim (US) slag cement grinding plant in Camden, New Jersey, according to MarketLine. As part of the transaction, Essroc will also obtain Holcim's cement terminal in Everett, Massachusetts, US. Upon completion of the transaction, Holcim's staff in Camden and Everett will join Essroc. The transaction is expected to be completed later in 2015. The acquisition will allow Essroc to strengthen its position in the sustainable building products market.

US: Essroc Italcementi Group has signed an agreement with Holcim to purchase its slag cement grinding facility in Camden, New Jeresy. As part of the transaction, Essroc will also obtain Holcim's cement terminal in Everett, Massachusetts. The acquisition will finalise when the pending Holcim and Lafarge merger completes later in 2015.

"The acquisition of the Camden slag grinding facility reiterates Essroc's commitment to the northeast market," said Francesco Carantani, Essroc's president and chief executive officer. "With the focus on sustainability and durability, there is a projected growth in the demand and usage of slag cement."

The Camden facility can produce upwards of 700,000t/yr of slag cement. Essroc currently produces slag cement at its Picton, Ontario, and San Juan, Puerto Rico, cement plants and at its slag grinding facility in Middlebranch, Ohio. With the addition of Camden, Essroc has a combined annual production capacity in excess of 1Mt/yr. Holcim's staff in Camden and Everett will join Essroc once the transaction completes.

US: Lafarge and Holcim have announced further details on the package of assets that they propose to divest in the US as part of their planned merger to create LafargeHolcim. The divestments include:

- Lafarge's 1.1Mt/yr Davenport cement plant in Iowa and seven terminals along the Mississippi River. The units will be sold to Summit Materials for US$450m in cash plus Summit's Bettendorf, Iowa cement terminal;
- Holcim terminals in Michigan and Illinois;
- Holcim Skyway 600,000t/yr slag grinding station in Illinois;
- Holcim Camden 700,000t/yr slag grinding station in New Jersey, along with a terminal in Massachusetts.

The proposed divestments have been negotiated with the staff of the Federal Trade Commission and remain subject to review and approval by the commission. The divestments will be completed subject to acceptance by the commission and to the closing of the merger between Holcim and Lafarge.

France: Holcim will sell its slag grinding plant in Dunkirk as part of divestments required by the European Commission (EC) to approve its merger with Lafarge.

The European Union's antitrust authority has required asset sales by both companies in regions where their activities overlap. The EC's approval is conditional upon the divestment of Lafarge's businesses in Germany, Romania and the UK. Holcim is required to divest its operations in France, Hungary, Slovakia, Spain and the Czech Republic. The proposed transaction concerns assets worth several billion Euros and will create the world's largest cement producer, with operations in 90 countries.

"The Commission had concerns that the transaction, as originally notified, would have had a detrimental effect on competition in a significant number of markets in the European Economic Area (EEA)," said the EC. "The commitments offered by the two companies address these concerns."

According to the EC, its assessment found that the merged entity would have faced insufficient competitive pressure from the remaining players in many markets. This would have brought a risk of price rises. In order to prevent a negative impact on competition, the companies have committed to divesting most of the operations where their activities overlap. Further, the EC said that Holcim and Lafarge will not be allowed to close the deal until it has approved the buyers of the assets put up for sale.